Dental abnormalities in patients with alveolar clefts, operated upon with or without primary periosteoplasty

Abstract

The frequency of dental abnormalities in the permanent dentition was studied in 172 eight-year-old children with unilateral clefts involving the maxillary alveolar process. 58 of the patients had unilateral clefts of the lip and alveolus and 114 had complete unilateral cleft lip and palate. 74 patients were treated with primary periosteoplasty in conjunction with lip and cleft palate repair. In 65 patients primary surgery did not include periosteoplasty. Photographs, roentgenograms and casts from alginate impressions were obtained just prior to the lip repair at the age of 3 months, and at the palatoplasty at 18–24 months. Further records were made in the deciduous dentition stage at about 5 years and in the early mixed dentition stage at age 8 years. A study was made of the frequency of normal and malformed central and lateral incisors on the cleft side; the frequency of dental aplasia in the cleft area and in the dentition outside the cleft region, and the frequency of supernumerary teeth in the cleft area.